


Not Forgotten

by buoyantsaturn



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Angst, BURNING MAZE SPOILERS, F/M, M/M, cannot stress that enough DONT read this if you havent read the burning maze, everyone knows this spoiler already but seriously dont, major character death but like he's already dead, theres nothing else its just angst, yall know who im talking about
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-03
Updated: 2018-05-03
Packaged: 2019-05-01 12:05:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14520162
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/buoyantsaturn/pseuds/buoyantsaturn
Summary: Will had sneaked into the Hades cabin that night, meaning that when Nico jolted awake at about four in the morning, he was tangled in strong arms and twisted sheets. He had to struggle for a moment to get out of his boyfriend’s grasp, but if the feeling he had was right - and gods, he hoped it wasn’t - then he needed to get out of there as fast as he could.





	Not Forgotten

**Author's Note:**

> this was,,,, incredibly spur of the moment??  
> if u look at my tumblr you'll see a big long post about how im completely indifferent about jasons death and then,,,,,,,, i wrote this and started crying a lot so i hope you enjoy it  
> please let me know if theres anything else i should tag!!

Will had sneaked into the Hades cabin that night, meaning that when Nico jolted awake at about four in the morning, he was tangled in strong arms and twisted sheets. He had to struggle for a moment to get out of his boyfriend’s grasp, but if the feeling he had was right - and  _ gods, _ he hoped it wasn’t - then he needed to get out of there as fast as he could.

He practically fell out of the bed, landing on the floor with a  _ thud _ just as Will finally woke up with a, “Huh? What’s happening?”

“I have to leave,” Nico said frantically, tugging on a pair of jeans and stumbling around in the dark. He needed a bottle of water, some kind of snack that would give him plenty of energy, preferably something sugary, and he needed to  _ leave. _

“Why? What’s going on?” Will asked, sounding much more awake already, sitting up in bed like he was ready to leap forward and keep Nico right where he was.

“I don’t know, but I’m gonna find out,” Nico said, found what he was looking for, and was gone before Will could even blink.

 

It was one in the morning when Nico arrived on some beach in Malibu. He’d never been there, but he knew that that was where Piper lived with her dad, and where Jason had been living while they went to school.

_ Jason. _ He was why Nico had come. Something didn’t feel right, it felt like when Bianca--

He wandered down the beach, looking for  _ something _ that would give him the answer he was looking for, and then he heard sobbing. He’d only heard cries like that once before, when Leo had died - or so they’d thought - and Nico recognized it immediately as Piper’s voice.

The beach was so dark that Nico couldn’t see anything, but he had gotten close enough to them that he didn’t need to - he could feel out exactly what he needed to know. Piper was there with Jason, only...Jason wasn’t really there anymore, was he?

Nico knew another jump would most likely make him pass out, but he needed to be sure. He’d gotten this same feeling on the day that Leo had technically died, but Nico had never checked that his soul had made it to the Underworld. He wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice, and he needed to make sure that there was no mistake on where Jason’s soul would end up.

He let himself slip back into the shadows, finding himself now in the slow-moving line leading to the judge’s table in the Underworld. It only took him a moment to find Jason - he was almost at the very end of the line, which was understandable seeing as he’d just died less than half an hour before.

Nico walked up to him and set a hand on his shoulder. Jason’s eyes were glazed over until he felt Nico’s touch, and it was like his soul had returned to his body. Nico could see that Jason recognized him, and though he’d never been to the Underworld before, he could also guess at where he was.

“I didn’t make it, huh?” was all Jason had to say.

Nico wanted to cry, but he wouldn’t let himself. “Come with me, we’re taking a short cut.”

He kept a firm grip on the dark robe that Jason was wearing and pulled him through the crowds of mindless, wandering souls, until they had passed the judge’s table and were walking into Elysium.

“But I wasn’t judged,” Jason said as Nico shoved him toward the gates of Elysium.

“You don’t need to be,” Nico told him. “I don’t know what happened, but I know this is where you belong.”

Jason was about to take a step forward when he seemed to remember something, and he turned to face Nico. “Did you see them? Did they make it out?”

Nico didn’t know what to say. “I saw Piper. I don’t know about any others.”

He saw tears welling up in Jason’s eyes. “I know I shouldn’t, but...I want to wait for her. I want to see her again, but-- Maybe she doesn’t want to see me. I think… I want to be reborn, to try for the Isle of the Blest.”

Nico’s breath caught in his throat. He knew he couldn’t wander down into the Underworld to visit whenever he wanted, but to think that even in his own afterlife he would never see his best friend again--

Jason stepped forward and hugged him. “Apollo said he would bring all the plans I had for the new shrines to Camp. I want you to take over for me. Make sure nobody is forgotten. Don’t… Don’t forget me, man.”

 

Nico had needed a moment’s rest before returning to camp. He wasn’t sure how long he was in the Underworld, but the sun had started to rise over camp when he appeared in the infirmary, collapsing onto an empty cot as soon as he’d manifested in the room.

Will ran over, prepared to give his boyfriend a stern lecture, when he saw Nico furiously wiping tears from his cheeks. He sat down on the edge of the cot and pulled Nico into his arms. “Darling, what happened? Where have you been?”

Nico had to take a few breaths before he could answer. “Jason is dead. I have to find Apollo, he’s got all of Jason’s designs for the new shrines, I’m supposed to take over for him--”

Will pressed a kiss to the top of Nico’s head. “Breathe, sweetheart. You need to rest. You need to grieve. And then you can look for Apollo. Everything’s going to be alright-- Leo came back, maybe Jason will, too.”

Nico shook his head. “Leo should have stayed dead. Jason  _ will. _ There’s nothing I can do about it now. I… I should tell Chiron.” He pushed back from Will to rise from his cot, but Will held him still.

“I’ll tell him,” Will said. “You stay here and rest.”

Nico nodded and laid back down, curling up on his side and staring blankly at the empty cot beside him.

“I’ll be back soon,” Will told him, but he didn’t think Nico was listening anymore.

 

By dinnertime, everyone at camp had learned of Jason’s passing. And while they didn’t have a body to bury - that was already on its way to Camp Jupiter, not that any of them knew that - the campers made a shroud for the son of Jupiter and burned it in his honor.

He wouldn’t be forgotten.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading and suffering along with me please come talk to me about the burning maze at buoyantsaturn.tumblr.com


End file.
